Happy St. Patricks Day!

We caught a Leprechaun last night but he got away before we could see him. When a leprechaun is caught they are suppose to give the person who caught him some of his treasure. When the kids woke up this morning they found their trap filled with green and gold coins, necklaces with shamrocks on them, green candy, pens, pencils and jewels. Lexie saw that the leprechaun left his lucky hat on the ladder when he went to get the gold we left for him. The hat was the first thing Lexie wanted. The rest of the kids wanted the hat too. I told them that each year we can look and if something is left Allison will get it and then on down the line. He also left us a note on the sign we made for him. The note said (in very little writing) You can't catch me . They were a little sad that they didn't catch the leprechaun but they were very happy with the treasure that was left for them. Before the kids left for school they all got dressed in green so they would be safe from pinches at school and then had green french toast and milk for breakfast. Then we left for school in our green van filled with people in green. The school monitor helping kids from their cars thought that we looked pretty cool.

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After dropping the older kids off at school, I came home and got Ethan and Madison dressed in green. We even put a green ribbon on Benji and Miah so that they would be saved from any pinches.

Our Leprechaun Trap

The kids and I wanted to set a trap to catch a Leprechaun. We made this cute hat. Leprechauns have big egos, so a giant version of their own hat is irresistible to them. We also made a little ladder for the little leprechaun to climb. They don't like to follow rules so we made a sign that says Don't Climb Ladder! The sign will tempt the leprechaun to climb it even more. Once he steps on the false top to get his gold chocolate truffles, he will fall in and be trapped. The kids are very excited to wake up tomorrow morning and find that they have trapped a Leprechaun.

Daddies Boy

Can you guess who Ethan's trying to look like in this picture? If any of you think he's trying to look like his dad your right! last night Ethan put on Travis' shirt, hat, coat, shoes, and glasses. He was walking around the house with Travis' cell phone acting like he was talking to a customer about a bedroom set. I thought Ethan looked so cute and so much like Travis, I had to take a picture. We told him not to smile in the picture because Travis doesn't like getting his pictures taken and I don't have that many pictures of Travis smiling. Ethan had a very hard time not smiling and after trying not to smile for awhile, we got this picture. I think Ethan looks just like his dad! Before he was born I told my Mom that I wanted a little boy who looks just like his dad and I got one. He even has the same moles on his face as his dad. One on his chin and one just above his lip. Ethan loves his Dad so much and wants to be just like him.

Don't Rush Through Life!

I drove by this cute elderly couple walking hand in hand the other day. What a great example of love! It made me think about how busy life gets and how hard it can be to slow down and enjoy little moments with the ones we love. I know that too many times I get caught up in my house work and other projects that I miss out on quality time I could have shared with my family. I think we all need to slow down and make time for those special people in our lives.

Bryson

I Have Signal Lights!

We have had our mini van (The Green Bean) for I think two years now. We have always had problems with our right signal light. We would replace the light and than months later it would burn out and we would have to replace it again. Just a few months ago our left signal light started to act funny. I would go to signal and it wouldn't work at all and then some days it would work but not for that long. I have had people get mad and give me the finger because my signal light wasn't working. Every time a cop would pass, I thought he was going to turn around and give me a ticket for not having working signal lights. Well after watching Cameron yesterday, Robby came over and fixed my lights. He found the reason my right blinker wasn't working wasn't because the bulb was bad it was because the bulb holder was. Robby also replaced the flasher in our van which was causing the left signal light to have problems. Thanks to Robby both my signal lights work and now I can drive around town with no worries.

What Does It Mean To Be Shy?

I have been known my whole life as a person who is shy. I was talking to my friend Jeri the other day and we were talking about what it really means to be shy. I decided I would look it up on the Internet and this is what some people had to say about being shy.
1. A person that is usually quite and secluded especially around new people. They are sometimes afraid of saying there opinions for fear of what people will think. I don't think they have low self esteem, I mean they could but I don't think all "shy" people have low self esteem. They can also be very unsure about there opinions or what they want to say.
2. One who is afraid of being ridiculed or rejected (fear of failure/fear of people) or one could just be appearing shy because they can't or won't look beyond themselves and look outward to what someone else may want, need or have to offer (self-absorbed).
3. Being socially defunct.
I don't think I'm shy, I just don't like speaking in front of large groups. I may be a little quieter than most people, but I don't think that makes me shy. I'm not afraid to speak my mind and I don't care too much about what other people think about me. I don't think I have low self esteem or that I'm self-absorbed. I think people have been calling me "shy" for too long. I may be a little quiet, but I'm not shy!

I Love Wednesdays!

I now have a favorite day of the week. Travis told me that he wanted to start having date nights once a week and we decided to have them on Wednesday nights. Every week Travis and I are going to take turns planning the date. Last night was our first date and Travis chose to go to Applebee's. It was so nice to get out of the house and spend time alone with no interruptions. You would think that because Travis has his own business I would see him more, but that's not the case. Travis is always working! I'm not saying that he would pick work over being with his family because that isn't true. When you have your own business it's hard not to work or think about work all the time. I'm glad that I can spend quality time with Travis every week! I hope he enjoys the quality time as much as I do.

Pretty Day!

Today was such a pretty day. Because it was so warm outside, I decided that I would let Benji play out on the grass. At first Benji was a little nervous to go out, but once he finally decided to join us, he had so much fun playing with sticks and exploring the front yard. Benji is such a cute dog and we are having so much fun with him!

My Purse Camera

This camera is one of the many items Travis got a great deal on at Circuit City. Now I have a camera to carry around in my purse. I love my nice Cannon Travis go me for our 12 year Anniversary, but is is so big and I can't have it with me all the time because it's a very expensive camera. I was playing around with my new little camera and found that it does slide shows with the pictures I have taken with my camera, and they play the slide show to music. I can go in and pick from 8 different songs. I thought that was a funny little thing to discover on my new camera.

NO!!!!

OK. I was so excited to go and see Dr. West today and be closer to getting my braces off. For some reason I thought I would be getting my braces off this month. I went in and Dr. West adjusted my wires and told me I have to wear elastic bands on my side teeth during the day and some on my front teeth at night while I sleep. The purpose of the elastics is to move my top teeth back so they are touching my bottom teeth. My next appointment will not be until the 27Th of April. I can't believe I have to wait even longer. I know this is a funny picture of myself and my nose looks huge, but I want to look back and see how much the elastics helped move my teeth back. I will go see Dr. West in April and he will see if I'm ready to get them off. If my teeth look good, he will schedule another appointment and then I will get them off. Who knows I might not get them off until the end of May if I'm lucky.

Thinking of you

I have been thinking about my parents a lot lately and I want them both to know how very lucky I am to be their daughter. They are both very hard working, loving, and selfless people! My parents are always helping those around them without wanting anything in return. I hope they know how much I love and appreciate them and their love for me and my little family. Mom and Dad, I just wanted to say that even though we are far apart, you are always with me in my heart. I love you!

I'm A Mess

Lexie's friend was over spending the night last night, and we were watching a show about over weight people. I was thinking out loud and I said that I needed to lose a little weight. Lexie's friend over heard me and laughed. She said that she knows some people who would be so happy to be my size. Shortly after complementing me she said in a very surprised voice" They want to look like you and you are messy." I couldn't believe that Lexie's little friend thinks I have a messy look. Have I reached that stage in my life where I have let myself go? Are my kids and their friends embarrassed with how I look? I wonder how many other people look at me and think I'm a mess. I wish I had someone to help me with my look! I don't want people thinking that I have let myself go.

Buddies

I'm watching Cameron for Robby today because he had to go and work at the home show in Klamath Falls. Bryson and Cameron have been having so much fun together. I just have to laugh when I see them together because they look like a miniature Travis and Robby. They are both getting so big. I met Robby when I was pregnant with Bryson and Cameron was only a few weeks old. Now they are little buddies running around and having a great time together.

I Love Dark Hair!

Lexie says I dye my hair too much and she's right. I love having darker hair, but my hair doesn't hold color well so I have to dye it over and over. Carrie and Lindsey you are beauticians. Do you know why my hair wont hold color? Do you know of something I can do to keep my color longer? I would really love your advice!

Bryson's Hat

I made spaghetti the other day for dinner and after we were all done eating, Bryson came in and said " Look mom, mine hat " I thought he looked so cute with his lid hat and messy spaghetti face.

Joreg Nunez-Mendez

I was watching American Idol yesterday and I found another singer that I just love. Jorge nunez-Mendez from Puerto Rico, he has a very nice voice and a big heart. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for him.

Toothless

Yesterday after church I pulled Ethan's second front tooth out. I was so happy that he finally lost that tooth because it was a bad tooth and it was the first thing I would see when he smiled. Now it's gone and he will be getting nice new white teeth. Ethan sure is a cutie!!

Happy day!

Travis went to Circuit City the other day because they are going out of business. They have 70% off on most of their merchandise and we got us a new plasma screen TV. I'm so Happy! Now I don't have this huge TV taking up most of my family room. Lexie was not happy that we got a new TV! She has a very hard time with change. We have had this huge box of a TV for seven years and Lexie says it has lots of memories. I thought I would post a picture of our old TV before we sell it, so Lexie can have a picture of it to make her happy. The cool thing about our new TV is that it didn't cost us anything. Travis worked some things out so we ended up getting a nice upgrade for nothing.

Lexie's Birthday Party

We had Lexie's party at Travis' spa store and she had thirteen friends over to celebrate.

The girls had fun playing games and soaking in the hot tub.

Lexie had her friends hide her birthday gifts around the store and many of the gifts were pretty hard to find.

We all sang happy birthday to her and then she wanted to take a bite out of the corner of her cake. Lexie loves getting cake all over her face.

Lexie's birthday party at the spa store was a hit. Everyone there had a great time!